Tea bag and the like



y 1937- s. COOPER 2,087,796

TEA BAGVAND THE LIKE" Original Filed Oct. so. 1 19:53

Patented July 20, 1.937 a Cooper Tea Packet Companydirooklyn, N. Y., "a. .1 icorporation ofNewYork :1

Original application October 30'. 19 33, j 695,943. Divided and this sppuesuon Septemi tel-.11, 1934, Serial nopmsu i a cam (01. 99- 711) This invention relates to tea bags and the like, the envelopes of which are formed from a novel form of perforated sheet-material, and provides improvements thereim'fl a v burstwhen-dangle'd or jlggled in hot water in the act of infusingthe water with the extract from the tea-leaves contained in the bag. Cellophane has the pecularity of being tough when there areno slits or incisions in it, but of tearing. with-exceptional ease when it has a slit or inclsion at which a tear may initiate. Examination of perforated "Cellophane under a microscope has revealed tiny fissures running into the Cellophane from the edges of the perforations,

and this discovery applied to the knowledge of the way in which teabags are used, explains the ease with which tea bags made of Cellophane burst when manipulated in hot-water in the 50 however exaggerated.

5 Figs. 4. and 5 are vertical sectional views illusbrewing of-tea. .A mass of tea-leaves acquires considerable weight from absorption of water, and this weight acting on the Cellophane, weakened by the fissures running into it from the edges of the perforations, causes the Cellophane.. to tear, and the tea-leaves thereby escape into the cup or vessel in which the'tea is being brewed.

The present invention provides tea bags h'aving envelopes of perforated Cellophane or the 1ike,-which tea bags formed'of such material will withstand force's tending to tear or burst the same toa much' greater extentthan tea bags made of perforated-- Cellophane" heretofore used in making such tea bags.

Anembodiment of a tea bag made according'to the present invention, and figures illustrating a mode of procedure in forming the perforated sheets of Cellophane and-the like used in making the tea bags are illustrated in the accompanying drawing. In said drawing Fig. pleted tea bag. The size of the perforations is Figs. 2 and 3 are respectively, anda plan view of the perforated sheet made according to my invention, the dimensions being greatly exaggerated.

1 is'a face view of a com a se'ctional'view Serial No.

tratlve of e niece of procedurejfor'gformingi' the perforated'materlalfi Referring to said within the envelope [dried tea; leaves. Tn e contained nitne tea ball, lance-water;

The twosheets' of; perforated C lloph may be held together at their edges byv a 14,01: thread." The envelope may have a cord or string l8 attached thereto for dangling it in hot-water.

Ashereinbefore set forth, perforated Cellocomplete satisfaction owing to more'or-less fre quent bursting 01' the perforated fcellophanef envelope, particularly inthe' manipulation or danglingof the tea-ballin hot-water in the act b of brewing the tea.

7 win num r l .l lli siz Bates. an en h chmay. beftormed ofper-j" a 'foratedsheets l2 oi' Cellophane-f", and mm;

v dp a nin e t a leaves l se 'ln new a insi f d in st pin h a s 15 .phane-;heretofore used for tea bags does-not give 7 j The principal contrlbuting cause to the bursa ing of-the perforated ,Cellophane material ap-' pears to bethe fissures incident to, and running into the material from, the perforations which are made inthe. Cellophane" material. The

perforationsjbeing' in the'flat material, the strains I incident to theguse of the material, are borne by the material whiclii's weakened by the running inward fromthe perforations.

According to the'present. invention the perforations are formedpnot in thezflat material,

but in bosses projecting from the fiat material.

By providing or arranging-the perforations in bosses raised from the sheet,'the weakness i'n the material adjacent the perforations, and incident'to the perforating, are confined to the bosses, and are not created in thesheet itself. Referringto Figs. 2 and 3, bosses Mare shown as projecting'fromthe sheet of Cellophane" l2; and the perforations 22 are formed in the bosses l2. The-perforations 22 are in the apex por-j tions of the bosses 20. The strains against the material I! are therefore borne by those portions of the material into which fissures from the per forations have not entered. Consequently the perforated Cellophane'is much better able towithstand strains, when made according to the present invention, than in the case'where, the material is weakened by fissures which run into" the part of the'material which. bearsthe' tensional strains incident to use. Fissures runnin into the embossed portion 20 from the pe'rfora-- tion 22 in the apex do not weaken the material in the same, way that fissures do which enter the fiat portion of the sheet l2.

, The perforation may be carried out as a part of the operation of embossing the Cellophane; Referring to Figs, 4 and 5, a sheet of Cellophane I 2 may be interposed between dies 30, 3|. One of the dies, as 30 may be provided with a series of punches 33.51'hese punches? 33 are forced againstthe Cellophane III while held between the dies, and the punches 331 being provided with blunt ends 35, the first action of the punches is to .emboss the Cellophane; and, asthe movement of the punches continues, the ends of the punches burst through the-apexz of the boss;

The piercing movement of .the punches is stopped when the -Ce1lophane is punctured, thus result-' ing in a perforation or aperture somewhat less.)

than the cross sectional area' of thepiin'oh.

I consider as like Cellophane" verythin material which isamorphous, or substantially so, such as thin parchmented paper.

The invention may receive other embodiments than that herein specifically illustrated and dezs. Q f t fA tea-bag package for. individual.usecom prising sheet material, one layer of which is superscribed. Whatis claimed is:

posed on another envelopingla charge of dry tea leaves, means closing the free edges of thesuperposed layers of sheet material-so thatthe charge of .tea-leaves is completely enveloped, said sheet material being of a kind in which tears readily start from perforations therein, said material material of said a having bosses in the body thereof, and said bosses having perforations in the apex portions thereof, such fissures at the edges of perforations as are incidental to the perforation being confined to the materialof said bosses.

2. A tea-bag package for individual use comprising sheet material, one layer of which is superposed on another enveloping a charge of dry tea leaves, a seam of thread closing the free edges of the superposed layers of sheet material so that the charge of tea-leaves is completely enveloped, said sheet material being of a kind in which tears readily start from perforations therein, said material having bosses in the body thereof, and said bosses having perforations in the apex portions thereof, such fissures at the edges'of perforations as are, cidental to the perforation being iconfined tov the material of said bosses. 7

3,14 tea-bag;package for individual use comprising sheet material, one layerof which is superposed on, another enveloping a charge of dry tea-leaves, meansclosing the free edges of thesuperposeddayers of sheet-material so that the charge oftealeaves is completely enveloped, said sheet material being Cellophane" or like amorphous material inwhich tears readily start from perforations-therein; said material having bosses; in the body thereof, and said bosseshaving perforations in the, apex portions thereof, such fissures at the edges of perforations as are incidental to the perforation being confined to. the

- smon coorm. 

